Dean Saunders was simultaneously hailed as a legend and blasted for losing the plot on Tuesday morning after he told talkSPORT: ‘Aston Villa are a bigger club than Chelsea’.
The former Villans striker made the bold claim on the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast, insisting that if you look back through football’s history books, it’s clear to see Villa are bigger than the Blues.
getty
3
Aston Villa players celebrate winning promotion back to the Premier League with victory in the Championship play-off final
The Midlands club will be back in the Premier League next season, having ended their three-year stay in the Championship by beating Derby County in the play-off final last month.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have just been crowned Europa League champions for the second time after beating Arsenal 4-1 in the final in Baku.
Yet, Saunders has sensationally claimed Villa are a bigger club.
Well, it may seem like a sensational statement now, but Aston Villa are the fifth most successful club in English football, with Chelsea sitting fourth having won just four more major trophies in their history.
Both clubs have won the European Cup once, but Villa have actually won more top flight titles.
Chelsea also only won eight of their 24 major honours before Roman Abramovich’s takeover in 2003.
3
Major honours counted as season-long competitions (Charity/Community Shield and UEFA Super Cup not included), and no one-off competitions tallied towards total. European trophies include: European Cup/Champions League, Cup Winners’ Cup, UEFA Cup/Europa League and Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. Only top flight league titles are counted as major honours.
But this was lost on a host of supporters as Saunders’ comments sparked outrage on social media… although a number of Villa fans obviously agreed with his view.
The Welshman told talkSPORT: “The owner of Chelsea has got more money than Villa, so he has made Chelsea into a big club.
“But actually, traditionally, Aston Villa are a bigger club than Chelsea if you go back over the years.
“If Roman Abramovich had gone to Villa, they’d be in the same position as Chelsea. He’s piled a load of money in and bought the best players.
“What would happen in Abramovich left?
GETTY
3
Chelsea added another Europa League to their impressive trophy collection since Abramovich’s takeover
“I’m not just winding up the Chelsea fans and I’m not just saying it because I played for them [Villa].
“If you go back over history Aston Villa are a bigger club than Chelsea. They’re a massive club, they’ve won everything.”
He then asked Alan Brazil: “Al, when you played for Ipswich, who were a bigger club, Chelsea or Villa?”
And the Sports Breakfast host replied: “That’s a good point Deano.
“Chelsea were struggling, they weren’t in the top flight, and Villa won the European Cup and the old First Division title in 1981.”
You can watch the full clip of Saunders and Brazil discussing Aston Villa and Chelsea above
SPANISH media report Leroy Sane and Gabriel Jesus are just two out of a possible eight players that have asked to leave Manchester City this summer. Neither player started in the dramatic 4-3 win against Tottenham as the Citizens crashed out of the Champions League on away goals.
LIVE Gabriel Jesus Man City News | One News Page
New Tottenham stadium: All the best moments from Spurs' opening ceremony Spurs finally open the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and held the perfect housewarming party, with a nod to the farewell
New Tottenham stadium: All the best moments from Spurs
Marcelo Bielsa's men crumble to the delight of Norwich and Sheffield United Leeds pressed, but in truth Brentford looked more likely to score the next goal as
Timeline of Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds tenure | FourFourTwo
Neymar punches fan! Neymar filmed lashing out at fan and Kylian Mbappe is sent off as Paris Saint-Germain lose French Cup final Brazil ace is in hot water after incident was filmed after their
Report: Tottenham Hotspur ready to offload Kieran Trippier and Serge Aurier this summer, lineup Aaron Wan-Bissaka as replacement March 22, 2019 John Football 0 According to The Sun , Tottenham Hotspur are keen on Crystal Palace right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka as they look to offload both Kieran Trippier and Serge Aurier this summer.
Tottenham may have received a boost in Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Man United join race to sign Lille forward Nicolas Pepe . The 23-year-old is also said to be a target for Liverpool, while he has reportedly caught the eye of the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal
Report: Manchester United join Liverpool to sign Nicolas Pepe
Paul Pogba is a target for Real Madrid and could leave Man Utd this summer (Image: REUTERS) Read More. Zidane is said to not be entirely convinced by Spurs star Eriksen and has put club bosses off opening discussions with the Premier League side at this stage.
NewsNow: Paul Pogba news | Breaking News & Search 24/7
Joey Barton: Police prevent Fleetwood Town boss from leaving
Aston Villa 2-1 Derby: Jack Grealish still partying a day after Dean Smith's side seal Premier League return The Villa captain helped end the club's three-year exile from the top-flight on
Jack Grealish still partying a day after Dean Smith's side
fussboll.com/2019/05/28/jack-grealish-still-partying-a-day-after-dean-smiths-side-seal-premier-league-return/
Jack Grealish still partying a day after Dean Smith's side seal Premier League return. Related Items Aston Villa 2-1 Derby Championship play-off final Dean
~ Aston Villa 2-1 Derby: Jack Grealish still partying a day
Uefa have defended the allocation of tickets made available to Arsenal and Chelsea for the all-English Europa League Final in Azerbaijan.. After wrapping up a 7-3 aggregate semi-final victory over
Chelsea vs Arsenal, Europa League final: Gunners fans
In fact, even some United fans have taken to Twitter to voice their surprise at seeing Pogba in the team as they feel he's not been consistent enough this season. One fan even tweeted the 26-year-old to say he should do the decent thing and take himself out of the XI! Below you can see the best tweets from these Manchester United fans on Pogba.
Paul Pogba 'should not be close' to PFA Team of the Year
The release of Football Manager 2018 means a whole new batch of potential stars to build your legacy upon. We've come up with ten must-sign wonderkids to improve your team in the video above.
Italian wonderkids you must sign in Football Manager 2018
No comments:
Post a Comment